Florence Hawley Ellis Museum of Anthropology

When possible, an advanced purchase of a Day Pass is preferred to visit Ghost Ranch and the Museums. This helps you get to having fun right away rather than having to wait in line at the Trading Post.  

Please click here to purchase or pay at the Welcome Center before coming to the museums.

The Museum is named for the late Dr. Florence Hawley Ellis, long-time professor of anthropology at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Dr. Ellis was one of the first women to receive a PhD in anthropology from the University of Chicago, in 1934. She initiated and led Ghost Ranch archaeology excavations from 1971 until 1990. Excavations continue today on two sites located on Ghost Ranch property. Education seminar classes in anthropology are available during the summer.

What You Will See: The Florence Hawley Ellis Museum at Ghost Ranch displays many of the artifacts discovered by Dr. Ellis and her teams. These items date from Paleo-Indian culture, 10,000 years ago; through ancestral Puebloan times; to modern pottery and weavings. 

One exhibit at the Ellis Museum is based on a book, Ladies of the Canyon, written by local author Lesley Poling-Kempes (available for purchase at the Trading Post). In her book, Poling-Kempes describes the lives of women who came to this area in the early part of the 20th century; one of whom, Carol Bishop Stanley, started Ghost Ranch in 1928 as a dude ranch. 

Also on exhibit is the work of Max Roybal, a sixth generation Santero or “saint maker”.  These lovely wooden carvings represent religious folk art that is unique to Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado.